October is Heritage Month at The Presbyterian Church of Wyoming Martin Luther (1483–1546) W e are just now into the 501st anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. The term, “Protestant” came from the pejorative word given to these leaders of “protest” against the established order and authority of the Roman Church. Seeking reform within that church, Luther struck a chord of protest that resounded through the world of the time. Presbyterians are Protestors. How about that! This is a protest against any authority that seeks to usurp God’s role revealed in Scripture and witnessed to us by the Holy Spirit. “On October 19, 1512, at the age of 28, Luther received his doctor’s degree in theology, and von Staupitz turned over to him the chair in biblical theology at the University of Wittenberg, which Luther held the rest of his life. “As Luther set to work reading, studying, and teaching Scripture from the original languages, his troubled conscience seethed beneath the sur
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October is Heritage Month at the Presbyterian Church of Wyoming October is our month to celebrate our Reformation Heritage as well as the Heritage of our own PCW Heritage of ministry in Wyoming. On Sunday, October 14 our theme will be from one of the stained glass windows that grace our sanctuary. Bring your own personal Bible to church with you that day. John Wycliffe is pictured above. He was one of the earliest leaders in the Reformation movement, circa. 1330 - 1384 (100 years before Martin Luther). John Wycliffe has been called “ The Morning Star of the Reformation .” because his efforts arose at the dawn of this important new era. Wycliffe's call from God was to translate the Bible into English, a language then considered to be vulgar and not worthy of sacred scripture. But Wycliffe's passionate mission was that all people be able to read the scriptures in their own tongue. He not only had to translate the scripture into English from Latin, Greek and Hebrew
Sunday, September 30, 2018 Praying from Heaven to Earth... I recently came across an idea that has captured my imagination – Pray FROM Heaven TO earth rather than earth to Heaven. Like most people I usually pray about circumstances, family, world concerns , justice and more. I present my petition from my earth-bound perspective and what often seems unsolvable “problems”. But! This is a Bible “but” (which I love!) – Ephesians 2.6 says, For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. ( New Living Translation ). Our Father God sees us already seated with Christ Jesus in the heavenlies. Colossians 3:14 hints of this same status. “Seated with Christ” – this was a faith “wow!” for me. I heard a pastor preach about this text and it was suggested that we should, based on our status of being seated with Christ in the heavenlies, pray FROM Heaven TO earth. What that means for me is that I
I was thinking about the Old Testament story of Joseph this week. His Father favored this son and bestowed upon him a customized, expensive "coat of many colors". His brothers were jealous and one day they sold him to traders who sold Joseph into slavery in Egypt. They told the father that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal and presented a bloodstained coat of many colors as proof. In the end, God blessed Joseph and he became a top government official in Egypt and when his estranged brothers arrived to get food in a time of famine, it was Joseph's official duty to give those rations. He forgave his brothers saying that "what was meant for evil, God has meant for good". Exodus 50. As we face each day and look toward the uncertainties of the future, we can trust God to be with us today and guide us into tomorrow. In Christ’s redemption, God puts on us a coat of many colors, a robe of righteousness… you are the Father’s beloved as no earthly Fat
One of the blessings of PCW are the comments from members after worship. It is common to hear, “nice sermon”… but I’m getting comments that show engagement and interest – “ I Liked the sermon, especially the part about… it really got me thinking…” People like you salt a congregation with spiritual vitality and you will be a blessing to your next installed pastor. One day when I first arrived a member came in my office, looked around at the sparse furnishings and said, “this isn’t a very welcoming room for people who come to see the pastor”. I agreed. That was followed by a brief conversation about what would make the room warm and welcoming for people who needed counsel and prayer as well as those who came to work with the pastor on a project. That conversation was relayed unknown to me and suddenly we had an office renovation underway and someone who was willing to help fund the project. My thanks to those folks for their generosity and for the creative talents that saw a ne
A couple weeks ago, I shared a brief "testimony" in the sermon and I caught the sight of many a tissue dabbing an eye and hands wiping a tear. Why? Because our hearts are hungry for God to encounter us, to manifest God's holy presence and to make God's will real on earth as it is in heaven.... testimony is an invitation for God to "do it again"... the following article is from the current edition of the journal, Reformed Worship The Use of Testimony as a Thick Worship Practice By Sam Hamstra, Jr. August 16, 2018 When we gather each week, we participate through thick and thin practices. We benefit from both and both play important parts in the liturgy. But given a choice between the two, choose thick. As Christ-followers, we worship the Lord through thick and thin. We worship the Lord in good times and bad, with plenty and with little, after victory and after defeat, during storms and while basking in the sun. We also worship the Lord thro
What's Our Story?
A "transition dynamic" during the time between pastors is a simple one that we all know and practice - telling stories that celebrate our history. I've heard many of you tell me stories of faith formed in this congregation, stories about life in Wyoming when you were young and stories about the impact of the Presbyterian Church of Wyoming on the community itself. I overhear stories every Sunday as you gather for worship or share in fellowship times. These stories build a sense of community in the church. The stories bond us to one another as we hear common themes, celebrations and yes, even confused grief at the departure of a pastor. United Church of Christ minister and author, Lillian Daniel, believes that the church can be renewed by sharing our faith stories, our stories of life with God, as “testimony”. But the church must be a safe community for testimony this to emerge, she calls it a “household of the heart” (Telling it Like It Is, Alban, 2006). Stories